Falling Into King,, Vixenrath's story
by Go-ruden Kiba
Summary: Lykouleon and KaiStern are dead, Rath killed them and is now on the run. Rune and Thatz are after him, leaving behind a dyeing Tetheus, a missing Ruwalk, and a Cernozura that isn’t totally Cernozura. What is lonely White Dragon Officer Alfeegi to do?


K, so I tend to do Alfeegi-san-centered fanfics, and that's 'cause 'Feegi-san is cool, and I don't think that it's fair that the only one that cares and attempts to help Lord Lykouleon is the one that dies doing his duty to King and Kingdom. Kai-Stern was just bringing back a friend, 'cause he was dyeing anyway! I think that this is the way it SHOULD have happened, and that's what this fic is all about. I don't own Dragon Knights, 'cause if I did, this is how it would have happened, and not the way it really is, and that is confusing. And I will always blame Ruwalk for letting Alfeegi-san die. He could have very easily picked up Alfeegi-san, it's not like he would have weighed much… have his body weight had bled out of him already! Thanks Go-ruden Kiba, my older brother, for posting this on FF.N for me!

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Alfeegi wandered the halls forlorn. The castle's inhabitants had fallen to pieces, and the castle itself was only standing because Rath was still alive… somewhere. He was the only one that still had the Lord's blood, and if he died… Alfeegi knew that the castle would fall down around his ears someday. He just wished it didn't have to be like this. Having to watch as your Emperor… no, your friend… is killed by someone that the entire castle trusted, that the entire castle wanted to protect. Now what was left of the castle wanted Rath dead.

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Two days ago, Rath had gone on a killing spree. Half the Dragon Fighters were dead and the other half were either on their way to join them, or badly injured before the other Knights and the Officers – along with Lykouleon – had cornered him. Swords drawn, they had tried to talk him down, only to have him strike out at them with words that hurt, and a sword that cut bones. Kai-Stern had always been an egotistical bastard. Thinking that he could talk Rath down, that he could help the cracked teen. He was wrong.

Kai-Stern had put his sword down in front of him on the floor, and stepped up to Rath, hands out in a sign that he meant no harm. Rath had lowered his own steel, and Kai-Stern had managed to gather the Fire Knight in his arms, before finding that the Dragon Sword had "magically" grown out of chest. Rath kicked Kai-Stern to retrieve the sword out of the white haired's heart, and Kai-Stern fell to the floor, dead as a doornail.

Lykouleon had lost it then, charging foreword with his own sword, and managed to gash Rath's side just before Rath's sword entered Lykouleon's diaphragm. Ruwalk ran to get Dr. Laira. Tetheus and Alfeegi rushed Rath as his sword was preoccupied, Alfeegi landing a hit on Rath's shoulder before Rath had freed his sword, and sliced at Tetheus. Rath muttered something under his breath in a language that Alfeegi didn't understand, then grabbed Alfeegi's hand, and sliced Alfeegi's palm across the Dragon Sword. Rath then leapt out of a nearby window, Fire following, and catching him in mid-jump. The other Knights followed him without stopping to see if their King needed their help, and chased Rath. They have yet to come back.

Alfeegi fell to his knees beside the Dragon Lord, watching as the blonde's eyes searched the face of the teal-haired White Officer. The Dragon Lord was shacking so badly – his green eyes dimming – blood poured over the carpet, staining the faint green material a deep, nauseating scarlet. He clawed at Alfeegi, who held him tightly, sporting Lykouleon's shoulders with one arm, and his head with the other. Lykouleon's blood mixing with the blood on Alfeegi's hand.

"P-Please, Alf-ee-g-gi. D-d-d-on't let the… c-c-astle… fall." Lykouleon had stammered, before passing in Alfeegi's arms.

Alfeegi sat there, the corps of Lykouleon limp in his arms. A faint sound came from behind Alfeegi, and laying Lykouleon down carefully, he turned to find a badly wounded Tetheus slumped against the wall. Alfeegi stood, staggered over to the Black Officer, and tore off Tetheus' shirt, only to find a deep gash in the left side of his chest. Alfeegi tried to stem the bleeding, ripping strips of his own shirt off and tying them tightly across Tetheus' chest. It helped some, but not much as deep wet coughs raked their claws through Tetheus, spraying Alfeegi with blood. Alfeegi covered Tetheus' mouth with his cut hand to try to quiet him so that he wouldn't injure himself further, only to wind-up gathering a pool of Tetheus' blood in his hand. Just then, Ruwalk and the doctor ran up, and paused at the slaughter before them. Alfeegi felt them staring at him, he stood, and rounded on them.

"What the hell are you doing, just standing there when Tetheus needs your help? Lord Lykouleon is beyond your aid doctor, but Tetheus still needs your assistance!" he shouted at them, lifting one of Tetheus' arms over his neck, and hoisting him off the ground. But Tetheus weighed too much for Alfeegi, who was weakening from an unseen wound, and he fell back to the floor. Ruwalk and Laira ran forward, clutching Tetheus, and dragging him down the corridor and away. Alfeegi sat there, panting, then shook himself and crawled over to Kai-Stern.

The Blue Officer was dead, he had been as soon as the large sword had entered his heart. His face was frozen in a look of surprise and fear. The gapping hole in his chest was enough to make Alfeegi gag, but he managed to hold himself down, fighting desperately to control himself as he picked Kai-Stern up carefully from the ground, and laid him beside Lykouleon. There was so much blood, and Alfeegi was covered in it, his blood mixing with that of the other Dragon's. Rath had taken so many from Alfeegi already, now it looks like he would take Tetheus as well. Alfeegi felt weak, not just because he couldn't stop Rath from taking Kai-Stern and Lykouleon, but something inside of him seemed to be disappearing as well. He looked at his hands as he leaned against the wall. His hands were stained red with Lykouleon's, Tetheus', and Kai-Stern's blood. He sighed as he looked over at the two carcasses, and let his vision slide.

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Cernozura had woken him ten minutes later. Her look should have been stunned, or concerned, or appalled. It wasn't. Her expression was one of indifference, as though she didn't care that Lykouleon and Kai-Stern were lying there, dead, only a foot away. As though she didn't care that Tetheus was fatally wounded, and dyeing in the infirmary. As though she didn't care that a Blue Dragon Ball was resting lightly on Kai-Stern's broken chest. As though she didn't care that Alfeegi was also dying, slowly, from a curse that Rath had put on him, and from touching Lykouleon's blood. She was angry that the carpet was stained. She yelled at Alfeegi to move them so she can start cleaning the floor.

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Now, two days after the incident, Alfeegi was searching for Ruwalk, who had disappeared after leaving Tetheus in the infirmary. Alfeegi knew that he had to find Ruwalk. He was the only one that could be the Dragon Lord now. Rath had not come back, and even if he did, someone would kill him as soon as he stepped into the castle. If it weren't for that, Rath would take over for the dead Lykouleon, but that wasn't possible now. So Ruwalk it was. The only thing was that Alfeegi was steadily getting weaker, and every room in the castle had been searched thoroughly. Alfeegi stood up from his seat on the steps, leaned against the wall, and headed to the infirmary. Once there, he sat beside Tetheus' bed, and felt the tears that he had held back for the last two days burn his eyes. Gripping Tetheus' hand Alfeegi realized that for the first time; he was seeing a side of Tetheus that he didn't think existed. The Tetheus that he knew was the hard one, the yokai without emotion, the man without a weakness. But here, the one that lay in the bed, was one that was finding mortality.

Tetheus opened his eyes a little, and gazed at Alfeegi with blood-red irises that were so clouded over with pain and blood loss Alfeegi knew that the hard Tetheus was still there. If he weren't, the pain would have been written on Tetheus' pale face, not his eyes. But Tetheus was still waning, slipping through Alfeegi's fingers like fine sand. Alfeegi smiled a little, his weariness shining through for the first time in his last two sleepless days. He had to be the strong one now. Alfeegi, the one that always needed to have papers signed the right way, Alfeegi, the one that needed comfort during the hard times, was now the strong one of the castle. The few remaining came to him seeking answers, seeking strength that Alfeegi knew he didn't posses, but gave anyway freely. Now, he had to be strong for a Tetheus on death's-door, though Alfeegi himself was fading too.

"Hi." Alfeegi whispered softly, smiling a little wider. "How are you doing today? Any better?"

"No, n-not very… m-much." Tetheus breathed, barely audible.

"It'll be fine, you'll be okay Tetheus, just hold on."

"Y-You know… that's n-not… true."

"It can be Tetheus, Rune will be back soon, and he can heal you. I know that he can."

"We n-n-need… Ru-walk. Un-d-d-der his… desk is… a d-door. D-d-did you… check there?"

"No, not yet. Thank you Tetheus, I'll look there. But _you_ need me now. Just hold on, okay?"

Tetheus smiled, and nodded slightly. Alfeegi couldn't handle it any longer. Gathering Tetheus in his arms, Alfeegi sat on the edge of the bed, allowing the Black Dragon Officer to know that he wasn't alone. Tetheus couldn't hold back, and he let his tears flow from his closed eyes, and onto Alfeegi's shoulder. Alfeegi felt the small sobs from Tetheus, and held him tighter.

"I d-d-don't… want to… leave." Tetheus breathed into Alfeegi's shoulder.

"You don't have to, fight it Tetheus, I know you can."

"I can't… fight it… any m-m-more… than y-y-you… can fight… y-yours."

"How did you know about that?'

"I c-c-c-can see… it eating… you… A-A-A-Alfee… gi. Rath is… k-k-killing you… too."

"That doesn't matter. _I_ don't matter. What matters is that _you_ are alright."

"Th-Th-Thank you." Tetheus sighed, and fell against Alfeegi. Alfeegi felt the tears in his eyes again, but refused to let them fall. Carefully, he eased Tetheus back into the bed, and brushed the fluffy black hair out of Tetheus' eyes. Blood red eyes, that would forever stare blankly at the ceiling, frozen in death. A black glow emitted from Tetheus' chest, and the Black Dragon Ball emerged from the torn mussels within.

Alfeegi ran his hand threw his hair, picked up the crystal, and put it in his pocket along with the Blue one already there. Then he pulled the sheet up, and over Tetheus' head, covering him as a sign of respect. He turned, and headed out the door, heading for Ruwalk's office as fast as he could. Half way there, he had to lean against the wall, breathing heavily. Cernozura came around the corner, carrying a large basket of laundry. Alfeegi reached out and grabbed her arm as she passed.

"Cernozura, what are you doing! The world is in chaos, and you're doing laundry! Do you even know what the hell is going on?"

"Of course I do Lord Alfeegi, Officers Kai-Stern and Tetheus are dead, as is Lord Lykouleon. Rath is away, and the other Knights are out looking for him. If you don't mind, sire, I have laundry to do." She said simply, and began to walk away.

Alfeegi stood there, stunned, and let her go. She didn't care that Lykouleon Kai-Stern and Tetheus were dead. She didn't care that it was Rath that had killed them. But how did she know that Tetheus was dead! He had _just_ died! And she had called him _Lord_ Alfeegi! Was he the Dragon Lord now that Tetheus was dead, that Ruwalk couldn't be found, and Rath was to be executed upon being found for triple murder? But how could she be so indifferent? The world was thrown off its rails, and her main concern was that the whites get bleached! Alfeegi shook it from his mind, that wasn't important right now. Right now, he had to find Ruwalk.

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Alfeegi crawled under Ruwalk's desk, and felt around for the door that Tetheus had mentioned. Not finding it, he let the rage and sadness that had dwelled in him the last two days take over and overturned the desk. In doing so, he had also upset the throw rug beneath it, and found the door that he had been looking for. Grabbing the ring, he hefted the door open, and peered into the brightly-lit room. Hurrying down the steps, he called out for Ruwalk, but the name died on his lips at what he found.

Ruwalk sat in a puddle of blood, a large, sharp dagger was stained with the thick scarlet liquid, and the man to whom the blood belonged to was staring at Alfeegi with unfocused, crazed eyes. There were thick, deep cuts down the length of Ruwalk's arms, and his wrists were slashed to the bone. Tears stained the tan cheeks of the Yellow Dragon Officer, and mixed with the red pool that he had created.

"Ruwalk, what have you done?" Alfeegi shouted, running over to Ruwalk, and holding the two-toned head in his hands.

"He won't let me die Alfeegi. Why won't I die?" Ruwalk's voice was soft, and had innocence to it of a young child asking its mother why the little bird had to be shoved from the nest.

"It'll be fine Ruwalk, everything will be okay. Just stay here. Do you have gauze in your desk?" Ruwalk shook his head, and the tears started down his cheeks again.

Alfeegi hugged him tightly. He didn't know if he could stand having two of his friends die in his arms today. Stroking Ruwalk's hair, Alfeegi tried to calm him, but Ruwalk just didn't want to be calmed.

"Calm down now Ruwalk. I'll help you, give me the knife Ruwalk. Give me the knife." Alfeegi whispered, holding his hand out for the knife.

Ruwalk looked at the knife, the at Alfeegi's hand, then into Alfeegi's eyes. He shook his head, the raised the dagger. Alfeegi grabbed for the blade, and felt the cold steel pierce his flesh, impaling his hand before it plunged into Ruwalk's chest. Ruwalk's eyes slid closed, and he slid sideways with a small sigh. Alfeegi's hand was pined against Ruwalk because of the blade, and his eyes were locked onto Ruwalk's face.

He pulled his hand away, the knife followed, and remained in the middle of his palm. Alfeegi sat heavily. Now it was true, he was the last Officer, the only one that could take the place of the Dragon Lord. The Yellow Crystal appeared on the same spot that Alfeegi's hand had been pinned to just seconds before. Picking it up, he looked at it, and slipped it into his pocket as well. That was all that was left of his friends now, and judging from how long the Knights had been chasing Rath, Rune and Thatz were dead too.

The tears that had threatened to fall for Tetheus were no longer existent. It was too much. Standing, Alfeegi walked out of the hidden room, out of the office, down the hall, and into the room that Lykouleon had been placed while awaiting burial. Raseleane had been put with the underground altar that Ruwalk, Lady Raseleane, and Alfeegi had found so that she would be safe. But after seeing what Ruwalk had done, he had a feeling that she had done the same in the under ground vault. He was truly alone now. He sat on the edge of the bed, and gazed at the dead Dragon Lord. Alfeegi knew what he had to do.

Alfeegi knew that he was dyeing. He had touched Lykouleon's blood, which was poisonous. So far, it was acting like revival water on Alfeegi, slowly eating away at him, killing him bit-by-bit. The curse that Rath had put on Alfeegi – or rather – the entire castle, had zapped him of all his energy, and was _also_ eating him from the inside out. He saw what it had done to Ruwalk, and to Cernozura. There was no need of explanation.

Alfeegi removed the Dragon Balls from his pocket, and let them fall from his fingers, but they did not fall to the ground. Instead, they flew from his hand, and rested in the air above Lykouleon's body. Taking a glass from the bathroom, Alfeegi had some of Lykouleon's blood that still resided in the Lord's veins to fill the glass half way. Then, he removed the knife from his hand, and had his own blood fill the remainder of the glass. 'No,' he reminded himself. 'It's not only mine, there's Tetheus', and Kai-Stern's, and Lykouleon's, in it. Now even Ruwalk's blood that runs in my veins.' Putting the cup aside, he held his hand over the wound in Lykouleon's middle, and allowed his blood to drip into the wound.

The first drop, the Yellow Dragon Crystal glowed brightly in acceptance. The second, and the Blue Dragon Crystal glowed in support. With the third drop of blood, the Black Dragon Crystal blazed with hope.

Somewhere in the wilderness, the Earth and Water dragons lay in their small forms over their masters bodies. The bleeding corpses cooled as a wind was kicked up from the wings of the Fire dragon as he shrunk to their size, and comforted them in their mourning. Rath ignored the Dragons, and licked the blood off his sword. The battle had been fierce, and the length of the two-against-one battle was staggering. But Rath didn't care, he was busy being triumphant.

The temperature dropped suddenly, and the grass and the black/white hair of the teen danced in the torrent of air that whooshed around him like an angry beast. He felt pain as he stared to burn with a red light, and the Red Dragon Crystal was ripped from him, leaving him to die from his wounds that he had received in the battle against the other Dragon Knights, and from the sudden departure of the Dragon Ball. The fourth drop of blood had fallen into the wound of the Dragon Lord.

Alfeegi felt the floor shift beneath him, and saw the Red Crystal crash threw the window, and hover in it's rightful spot above Lykouleon. Now, it was his turn. The fifth and final drop of blood fell, and he began to glow blindingly white. His copper eyes turned colorless, his teal hair became pure white, and his heart stopped as the White Dragon Crystal separated itself from it, and floated between the Yellow and Red Dragon Crystals, completing the circle.

Alfeegi collapsed to the floor, looking up at he ring that he had created, he knew that he had to finish what he started. Vision fading from no longer having a pulse, he reached up with a lead-like arm, found the glass, put it to his lips, breathed the incantation, and drank the continence. The castle stopped shifting, the Dragon Balls lost their light and fell to the ground, and Alfeegi's heart started again, with a renewed fervor. He had become the blood Dragon Lord, by replacing his life and blood with that of Lykouleon's.

Staring at the ceiling, Alfeegi couldn't find the strength to stir. The tears that he had hid from the few others that were left in the castle finally loosed themselves, and ran from the colorless eyes. After half an hour, Alfeegi stood, looked at the Dragon Lord, and picked up the Dragon Crystals. Placing them in their holders in the wall of the room, he turned, and was confronted with a mirror. Colorless eyes stared back at him,

His white hair reminded him of Kai-Stern's, both in their colorlessness, and in its fineness . His deep brown skin was that of Ruwalk's, his had been light, mainly fro the lack of sunlight he got as he stayed in his office for most of the time. He had become taller, roughly the height of Tetheus, and his blood had become pure as Lykouleon's. He was Alfeegi, as well as all the other Officers and the Dragon Lord. He had their blood mixed with his before he had changed, and now they still lived in his veins, protecting him and the kingdom. He was all in one, an embodiment of truth and power, knowledge and pleasure, and logic. He held in him the truth of Tetheus, the power of the Dragon Lord, the knowledge of Kai-Stern and his many travels, and the easy, laid-back pleasure that Ruwalk ruled his life by. Alfeegi had always lived on logic, so that was one attribute that he hadn't gained, but already had.

There was a knock at the door, and Alfeegi turned as it opened. Cernozura stepped in, a basket of clean cloths in her arms. She stopped when she saw Alfeegi. Putting the basked down, she bowed. 'Why is she bowing?' Alfeegi wondered to himself. 'In a dress, she should curtsy, something isn't right.'

"My Lord, for give my rude intrusion." Cernozura said, not getting up from her bow, but rummaging through the basket instead. Alfeegi put his hands behind his back, and summoned his sword. And in good time, for when it had fully materialized, Cernozura leapt over the basket, a sword in hand, and swiped at Alfeegi. He parried her easily, and shoved her backwards.

"Cernozura." He shouted, his voice stern, and that made her head snap upwards to look at him. "Just what are you doing? I am now the Dragon Lord, you and I are all that are left, and you attack me, why?"

"My Lord, I was told that you killed Ruwalk."

"By who?"

"…"

"Answer me Cernozura!"

"Tetheus, just before he died."

"That was not Tetheus, and I did not kill Ruwalk. Ruwalk died three-quarters of an hour ago, by his own hand. I do not know who told you that _I_ killed Ruwalk, Tetheus died in my arms over an hour ago, in the infirmary, and it was he that told me where to find Ruwalk. But you must hear me now. Send out for new Dragon Fighters, we are in need. Also, please find five new people that you believe would be accepted as Dragon Officers. Whether they are yokai, human, fairy, or elf, please find them. There are no Officers left, and I am afraid that I cannot rule alone. You will be with me Cernozura, please – a trusted advisor. See if any of the crystals accept you. But for now, I have Dragon Officers to bury." And with that, the new Dragon Lord left the room, and began his rule over the people.


End file.
